GRNC Alert 2-27-12: Greensboro News-Recor​d Pushes Park Ban

According to the News-Record "...no one has any statistics whatsoever to suggest that the city's parks are so dangerous that you'd be a fool not to go in there with one hand on the trigger."

Really? Aside from the fact that hands don't usually fit on triggers, there actually is quite a bit of information available to indicate that "gun-free zones" like Greensboro parks are among the most dangerous places in North Carolina.

Greensboro has one of the highest crime rates in NC

Maybe those in favor of the ban like Police Chief Ken Miller and Parks and Recreation Director Greg Jackson remain unaware of the crime wave that has hit their city? It does seem to be under-reported in the News-Record, so perhaps there is some excuse, or perhaps ignorance is bliss?

Mr. Jackson's lack of awareness seems odd given that Greenville, NC, plagued with a similarly high crime rate, dispatched the police to investigate park crime 93 times in 2010. And we are supposed to believe that park crime doesn't regularly occur in a city OVER THREE TIMES the size -- and never has in over 20 years? Something is missing in Greensboro, and it isn't crime-free parks - but may have something to do with good record keeping.

Park crime is rampant in NC

According to the News-Observer park crime is "fantasy". And that "until December concealed handguns have not been allowed in Greensboro parks and all other city property. Those shootout scenarios simply have not come true."

Yes, prior to passage of HB 650 the law-abiding haven't been able to bear arms, and so haven't been able to defend themselves. How can the law-abiding shoot when they have been unconstitutionally disarmed? Disarming citizens doesn't eliminate the need for self-defense - far from it. The clear outcome of defenselessness has been rampant crime.

Here are a few examples that seem to have escaped the attention of the News-Record, Chief Miller and Director Jackson:

Are rights only rights when deemed necessary by government (or newspapers)?

Of course the News-Record's argument really fails when considering the fact that rights don't depend on what government thinks is needed. Citizens have a God-given right to bear arms - period. We have work to do in order to ensure that our right to bear arms in Greensboro is not infringed.

IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED:

Write Letters AND Email

Write letters to the Greensboro News-Record correcting their faulty logic.

Email PRO-Freedom Councilors and thank them for voting against the illegal ban

Contact Information for PRO-Freedom Councilors

Use the webform selecting only these Councilors who have voted against the park ban: